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Pac-Man / Badtz-Maru Guitar Part 2

By
Edel Alon
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0

I finally finished the setup on my Badtz Maru Pac-man guitar. My last update was finishing up painting and assembly. The original goal of this project was to make a “boutique” guitar that was more about the visuals than the sound. After finishing the setup and installing the electronics, I’m flabbergasted by the output of this guitar. So flabbergasted that I used the word flabbergasted.

Here’s why:
I did a little research on the kind of electronics I wanted to put in. There are a couple of brands to choose from: Fender, DiMarzio, Seymour Duncan, Lace, and EMG. The sound of a Fender guitar is very specific. I thought I wanted to take the traditional approach and go with true Fender pickups but it didn’t make sense to only have Fender sound on a custom guitar with Badtz Maru and Pac-man on it.

Then I thought I wanted to go with DiMarzio and a set of Area ’58, ’61, and ’67 pickups. A guitar buddy of mine loves the sound of DiMarzio pickups and I thought about getting these pickups for a good 6 months.

In the end, I decided to go with EMG pickups. Part of the reason is because my PRS Paul Allender has a set of EMG 89 and EMG81TW and I love the sound it puts out. The other reason is because one of my favorite lead guitarists, Kirk Hammet, uses EMG pickups. Instead of trying to figure out a good combination of pickups, I decided to go with a prewired setup. Prewired means the company adds the pickups to the pick guard and all you do is add a battery and screw it in. If not, then I would have to unpack my soldering iron and make a few mistakes before getting it to work. EMG’s Solderless Install System is truly the way to go.

The set I got was the KH20. This prewired setup contains: the 81 (similar to my Paul Allender) and 2 single-coil pickups. The 81 has a great sustain and extremely high output. The pair of single-coils do not hum. One of my Fender friends tried it out and the first thing he said was that there wasn’t any hum. Usually, to get this done you’ll need a roll of copper tape to shield each pickup from the other. These single-coil pickups are very clean and give me the Fender sound when I want it.

The guitar is a Fender Bullet, the cheapest and lowest quality Fender guitar you can buy. In fact, I only bought it for $75. After artwork and putting in new electronics, I turned a $75 into a $1000+ beast for under $300.

I’m really happy and excited about this mod. Next mods to it? Change bridge, add a better nut, and better tuners.

References:
EMG
https://edelalon.com/blog/2011/07/pac-man-badtz-maru-guitar/

Cebiche

By
Edel Alon
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0


Cebiche is a wonderful combination of raw seafood and citrus juices of some kind like lemons, limes, oranges, etc… Heat is not applied and the seafood is “cooked” via the juice. Oh, the only heat added is a heat from a hot pepper of some kind.

Here are some basic instructions on preparing cebiche:

  1. Use fresh ingredients.
  2. Don’t marinade too long…not more than 3 hours.
  3. Make your cuts identical sizes.

My favorite recipe is the one I use in my Octopus Ceviche.

Is it cebiche or ceviche? I’m not really sure. My guess is cebiche is used mostly in South America while ceviche is used everywhere else.

Now where do I go for cebiche when I don’t feel like making any? I head to La Mar in the Embarcadero in San Francisco. They serve a variety of cebiches. On your first visit, I recommend doing the cebiche tasting. The tasting serves their Clásico, Mixto, Chalaco, and Nikei cebiches. From there you can move on to more complex types.

I should add that La Mar is a Peruvian restaurant and has many more delectable foods that represent Peru.

La Mar
Pier 1.5 Embarcadero
San Francisco, CA 94111
415-397-8880

Carpool Memories

By
Edel Alon
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0

A very strange thing happened to me today. I normally take public transportation to work but today I decided to drive in. I usually drive in solo but today I decided to pick up some passengers via casual carpool so I could jump into the carpool lane.

I lined up to pick up passengers. They jumped in and off we went. For those of you who don’t know about casual carpool, casual carpools are informal carpools that form when drivers and passengers meet at designated locations and are dropped off at a specific area. It is a strange concept but one that lessens your carbon footprint and is better for the environment.

I am normally a passenger. I remember I did a lot of research before jumping into someone’s car. I read up about what to do and what not to do. I used these sites as a reference:
http://rideshare.511.org
http://www.ridenow.org

There are a list of “rules” and proper etiquette when riding the casual carpool. I don’t think there is regulation on exacts and/or if there is a violation/fee if you break these rules. On the Ride Now website there is a good list of these “rules” and proper etiquette: http://www.ridenow.org/carpool/what.htm

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Congress Says No Money for Pacific Moves

By
Edel Alon
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0

Despite an end-of-the-month congressional deadline, the Secretary of the Navy told a Senate committee Thursday he does not know whether a contractor has been hired yet to conduct an independent review of plans to relocate thousands of Marines from Japan to Guam.

Secretary Ray Mabus’ comment caused a sharp rebuke from Senate Armed Services Committee members, who accused the Department of Defense of delaying the review and warned that no money would be spent on the massive military project until the mandated study is completed. The military realignment plan could cost U.S. taxpayers about $14 billion just for initial construction of bases on Guam, and the Senate has warned that the project might be unaffordable and unrealistic.

In its annual defense authorization act, Congress froze all funding for the project, calling for the military to conduct an independent review this year of the current plan and to explore alternative options, such as moving Marine Corps forces onto Air Force bases in the Pacific.

“It has now been two and a half months (since Congress passed a law requiring the study). How long does it take to let a contract to get an independent assessment, Mr. Secretary?” Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., asked Mabus during a public hearing. “Until we get that assessment, there should be no concrete plans made by the secretary of defense or the Defense Department.”

The delay is causing “intense frustration” among lawmakers because the review is needed to “get this redeployment issue into some kind of sanity,” McCain said.

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2 Rare Guam Rail Chicks Hatch at National Zoo

By
Edel Alon
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0

National Zoo officials say two rare Guam rail chicks have hatched there. The birds are extinct in the wild.
The small, flightless birds hatched March 3 and 4. The total population of the birds is now 162.

In several weeks, zookeepers will perform routine medical exams and take feather samples to determine the birds’ sexes.
Eighty-two chicks have hatched at the Zoo and the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute in Front Royal, Va. Some of have been sent to Guam for release and breeding.

Guam rails were plentiful on the island until the brown tree snake arrived in military equipment shipped from New Guinea after World War II. The snakes had no natural predators and hunted the Guam rails and eight other bird species to the brink of extinction.

Resources:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/2-rare-guam-rail-chicks-hatch-at-national-zoo-bird-is-extinct-in-the-wild/2012/03/15/gIQA7jXbES_story.html

Pi Day

By
Edel Alon
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0

Pi, Greek letter (?), is the symbol for the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter. Pi Day is celebrated by math enthusiasts around the world on March 14th and geeks like me.

My family celebrated Pi Day by going to The Cravery in San Francisco. The Cravery specializes in pot pies…pi…pie. I’m sure you get it. We all ordered different pies: Traditional Beef, Classic Chicken, Chicken/Mushroom, and Pepper Beef.

Here’s a quick review:
Traditional Beef – Really good and hearty. Big chunks of beef.
Classic Chicken – Was the best out of the 4 and was one of the best one of us ever had.
Chicken/Mushroom – Had a strong taste of sage and had a lot of potatoes in it.
Pepper Beef – No complaints.

Over dinner we discussed the concept of Pi and then I brought up the concept of Tau. Tau is…well, I couldn’t really explain it after stuffing my face with pie. So visit Tau Day to learn more about it.

Pi is 3.1415926535897932384…
Tau is 6.2831853071795864769…
The Cravery is located at:
829 Mission St
(between 4th St & 5th St)
San Francisco, CA 94103

References:
Tau Day
The Cravery

 

PRS SE Series

By
Edel Alon
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0

I see it every year – the mad Christmas rush of youngsters and their parents jamming up Guitar Center to make the first monumental purchasing step in their rockstar careers: buying their first axe.

There are usually pre-packed sets rigged up for just this occasion.  Ibanez, Fender, Dean, and a host of others bundle a low grade electric with a small amp and accessories, all for about $200.

Now there’s definitely nothing wrong with starter guitars–my wife has fiercely held on to her sunburst Fender Squire from the early 90s despite the pleadings of our sound tech—and it’s a great way for parents to test the waters with their excitable juveniles without breaking the bank. The problem begins when the 30-year-old is still riding with training wheels, so to speak.

While it is definitely true that the guitar does not make the guitarist, there are lessons to be learned about tone and sound quality that can only be learned on more advanced instruments.  And definitely a recording or performing artist needs good sound going into mix.  The problem is, that while there is no shortage of guitar “unicorns” out there, not many are willing to take the leap from $200 to $2000.

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East Bay Center for Performing Arts

By
Edel Alon
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1
Photo by Tim Griffith

What defines a community? For Richmond, California, the answer has long been poverty, violence, and gang warfare. Much like it’s nearby neighbor, Oakland, communities had been taken over by desperation. There are still places in Richmond and Oakland where I’ve been warned not to drive, and the police blotter never surprises me, but in the past five years there has been a definite shift. A shift towards taking back the community from the streets and investing in something that can make the city proud.

For some local institutions, this mission is not a new one. Community mainstays like the East Bay Center for Performing Arts, have been around for decades struggling to feed the soul of an impoverished people. But now, more people—and more donors—are on board, bringing much deserved attention to a very worthy cause.

The East Bay Center For Performing Arts now lives in the gutted and completely revitalized Winters Building in downtown Richmond. Its movement from the dilapidated one-story with crumbling floors and pasty walls to a glossy multi-million dollar concert and performance space, is a striking symbol for the community: Richmond is back. And the people of Richmond brought it back with force.

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Note Taking Stationery with Tasks

By
Edel Alon
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0

I was in a meeting the other day and someone noticed my paper where I took notes. There are many thoughts on how people should take notes and there are some really good ideas and some really bad layouts. So I decided to make my own. Why? Because I can and I believe that I’m a little more effective when I work on the templates I know best. One of the things that I’ve found is that some templates out there have too much information and blank space that I’ll never use or they are too blank where it doesn’t have all the things I need.

The template I made fits my needs where I can take general notes, write down the associated tasks, make a list of people who I need to call in relation to the notes, and an area where I can doodle or highlight the important things that I need to remember. It’s laid out cleanly.

I’m also in the process of making another layout just for managing projects. While I like the stuff that Day Runner and Franklin Covey put out, it just doesn’t suit my style.

Download the PDF and try it out. The best thing to do is print as is. Don’t print to fit. Contact me if you would like a custom template for yourself.

Resources:
Edel Note Taker (PDF)

Rose Boutonnière

By
Edel Alon
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0

I surprised myself with some homemade boutonnieres. I received a text message the other day, “The florist can’t make boutonnieres. Can you figure something out for my wedding?” My initial thought was, “The florist couldn’t make the boutonnieres? Did she just ask them today?”

I decided not to dwell on the many possible reasons why. Instead I texted back not to worry and that I’ll figure something out. It has been a while since I arranged flowers and must more made a boutonniere. Yes, I’m even having a hard time making sure I spell boutonniere correctly. Hopefully by the end of this entry I’ll be an expert.

Here was my train of thought.
Step 1. Make sure I have pins. Not regular pins but boutonniere pins.
Step 2. Make sure I have floral tape.
Step 3. Flowers…Roses…I need some Gypsophila! (Baby’s Breath).
Step 4. Arrange.

Roses are easy and I thought Baby’s Breath would be easy too. Totally wrong! I called 3 florists and none of them could sell me Baby’s Breath. They said that there isn’t any in San Francisco. The flower market hasn’t had any for days. The day I called was 3 days after Valentines. I’m not sure if that had anything to do with it but there wasn’t anything I could do to make Baby’s Breath appear. One of my close friends recommended for me to just make artificial ones out of tissue paper and some wire. As much as that sounded like a great plan, I decided against it and took a simple route. Simplicity was key…at least in this instance.

References:
This is the last boutonniere I made.
https://edelalon.com/blog/2009/07/edible-boutonniere-recipe/

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Welcome to the curated chaos of curiosity and creativity—brought to you by Edel Alon: maker, thinker, and hands-on problem-solver. This blog is part journal, part resource hub, and entirely dedicated to the art of doing. From culinary experiments and car tinkering to tech deep dives and DIY builds, you'll find stories, guides, reviews, and reflections designed to inspire, inform, and occasionally make you laugh (or at least raise an eyebrow). It's a celebration of learning by doing—with a few detours along the way.

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